Playful or not, he moved back because they had to get their asses in gear to get to work.
She headed to the bathroom.
He did up his pants.
Then ate his toast.
“Got ten minutes?”
Rix looked from his laptop, where he was reading some of the early surveys coming in and taking notes, to Judge, who was standing at his office door.
“Sure,” Rix answered, sliding his laptop aside.
But he felt his brows come together when Judge came in and shut the door.
He’d never had a closed-door meeting with Judge, impromptu or not.
Then his friend walked to the folding chair that was standing in for the guest chairs he was going to get in two to six more weeks when their office furniture started arriving.
Judge sat, looked at him and stated, “Friend zone.”
Shit.
“What’s up?”
“I’m asking Chloe to marry me this weekend.”
This was not what he expected.
It wasn’t unexpected, but it wasn’t what he expected after Judge closed the door.
What it was, was awesome.
He felt his face split in a huge smile as he stood and rounded the desk, saying, “Jesus, man, congrats. Damn.” He had his hand up in front of him, elbow cocked, Judge had gotten up too, his hand was the same, they clasped, slammed their chests together and pounded each other’s backs. “So happy for you. Shit.”
They separated, and neither of them took a seat.
“Asked Tom last week. Asked Genny this weekend. It’s a go.”
“You throwback fuck,” Rix razzed, still smiling.
“Most stressful thing I’ve done in my life, finding a ring good enough for Chloe Pierce.”
“You manage it?” Rix asked, resting his ass on the edge of his desk.
Judge remained standing. “Genny says it’s perfect. Sasha too. Dru loved it. So I have high hopes.”
Rix got serious. “She’d put a beer tab on her finger if it was from you, Judge.”
“Yeah,” Judge agreed. “So what’s up with you and Alex?”
Goddamn shit.
Sneak attack.
Rix tensed.
“Things have changed,” Judge observed.
Alex told her friends.
Rix had not shared with Judge.
“They have. We’re not fake anymore. We’re together.”
His bud, content deep down with his woman, happy now with this upcoming increase in commitment level, got visibly happier.
“Don’t get excited,” Rix cautioned. “She knows the drill.”
The happiness faltered as confusion set in.
“The drill?” Judge asked.
“It’s still for her family. Then Elsa Cohen pulled her usual shit.”
Judge nodded. “I saw that.”
“Yeah, so did my mom. And Peri.”
“Peri?”
“Yeah. Peri. So it’s now for my family, who’re happy I’ve found someone, and Peri, so she’ll back off. But mostly, it’s for us. Me and Alex. I dig her. She digs me. We dig doing the same things. So we’re gonna enjoy each other.”
“Enjoy each other,” Judge murmured.
Rix started to feel annoyed.
“You just gonna repeat shit I say?” Rix asked.
“I’m doing it because you’re not making any sense,” Judge returned.
“We like each other. She’s great to be around. We have the same interests. She’s fucking unbelievable in bed—”
Judge looked incredulous. “You’ve fucked her?”
“Like I said, we’re together.”
“Like, exclusive?”
That last word caught Rix in the throat, and he immediately turned his head to the wall that separated his office from Alex’s.
They hadn’t made that official, he just assumed it was understood.
The image of his sweet little fuck bunny sucking some other guy’s dick assaulted his brain, and his hands clenched.
“Rix,” Judge clipped.
Rix came back to the room. “What?”
“What the fuck is going on?”
“Do I need to get a whiteboard and spell it out?” Rix asked sarcastically. “We…are…together. And yes, it’s fucking exclusive.”
Or it would be, officially, as soon as he could get five minutes to inform Alex of that.
“So what’s the drill?”
“The drill?’
Judge now seemed to be seeking patience. “You mentioned she knew the drill.”
“Right,” Rix murmured. “It’s exclusive, but she knows I’m not looking for a relationship.”
Judge stood there, staring at him.
This went on so long, Rix bit out, “What?”
“Don’t do this,” Judge said quietly.
Rix felt that in his throat too.
“Not to her,” Judge went on.
“It’s gonna end okay, bud. We both know our friendship is where we’re gonna land, and we’re gonna guard that.”
“Jesus, Rix,” Judge said tersely. “What’s the matter with you?”
Now Rix was getting ticked. “Nothing’s the matter with me.”
“I’m not being a dick asking that, I honest to God want to know.”
“Nothing to know since nothing’s the matter with me.”
“We need to talk. Tonight,” Judge declared.
“I’m meeting Al’s friends tonight.”
“You’re meeting Al’s friends?”
“Yes,” Rix ground out. “Al’s friends.”
“Al?”
Rix didn’t respond to that.
Judge moved on.
“Tomorrow night then.”
“Tomorrow, Alex and I have plans.”
“Christ. Okay. This weekend.”
“We’re going to visit my folks this weekend.”
Judge’s head jerked back. “You’re shitting me.”
Rix stood. “Bud, this is not a big fuckin’ deal. We’re both adults. We’ve talked this through. We both know where it’s at. Back off.”
“Where it’s at is you have your head in your ass.”
Unh-hunh.
Oh yeah.
He was ticked.
“No, where it’s at is you have your nose in my business.”
They faced off.
It was Judge who broke it and walked to the door.